For many years manufacturers of a wide variety of grocery store products including cereals, puddings, coffee and bathroom supplies to name just a few have regularly and systematically offered discount coupons to purchasers of such products in an effort to encourage further purchases of those goods at discounted prices. Additionally, product manufacturers of various types of packaged products sometimes have special purchase offerings if a number of package ends, special labels or proof of purchase seals are collected and sent in with the purchase price of the offered item.
Traditionally, these discount or premium coupons, labels or other like items are packaged within or form part of the packaging for the purchased goods. Thus, they are not available for immediate use. Accordingly, it is necessary for shoppers to collect and save discount coupons, proof of purchase seals, labels, ends or portions of boxes or other like items so that they may be used subsequently. The problem that often occurs is that after having collected coupons, and for that matter even after particular coupons have been selected for use during the next shopping trip, the coupons are left at home. At other times, the shopping list is enlarged while at the store and there is no way to check the supply of coupons at home to determine whether there are any that could be used with the added items.
Many types of portable and compartmented handbags exist for allowing women to carry a variety of personal items and included among such examples are those shown in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,650,630; 2,937,680; 3,335,775; 3,874,435 and 4,098,312. The concepts in these patents have ranged from a quick change handbag insert, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,650,630, to a purse which includes a plurality of drawers as in U.S. Pat. No. 4,098,312. Most have a number of compartments for holding bills, checkbooks, vanity cases, lipsticks, combs, cigarettes, keys and change purses as well as make-up items including tissues and face creams. Some, as in U.S. Pat. No. 2,937,680, include fold out tray portions which are lighted so that lipsticks, keys or wallets held therein can be easily found in the dark while others include fold out flaps in which open pockets are mounted as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,335,775. Each of these examples, however, discloses only the concept of storing and holding personal items, from cosmetics to checkbooks, and makes their use and the finding of them an easier process. This is accomplished by having delegated particular sections or compartments within these handbags for holding particular types of items.
A second class of compartmented cases include those which attempt to provide a transportable desk or office and examples include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,232,397; 3,408,126 and 3,904,003. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,232,397 a case for carrying meter reader cards is disclosed which provides internal spaces for holding cards and writing instruments. U.S. Pat. No. 3,408,126 discloses a box-like case adapted to be used as a portable office and it, too, includes a plurality of compartments which can store various office supplies such as papers, staplers, paperclips, envelopes, pencil sharpeners, stamps and file holders. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,904,033 another type of traveling desk is disclosed which also includes spaces for books, large files and pockets or drawers for paperclips, rubberbands, notes, pens or other smaller items.